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Vacant Staten Island Mansion's Roof Collapses, FDNY Says

By Nicholas Rizzi | June 18, 2014 5:48pm
 A large, vacated mansion's roof collapsed on Wednesday, June 18, 2014. The Ocean Terrace home was listed for sale, and is scheduled to be demolished by the Department of Buildings.
527 Ocean Terrace
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TODT HILL — The roof of a large, nearly $1.5 million mansion in Todt Hill collapsed early Wednesday morning, the FDNY said.

The third-floor of the vacated 527 Ocean Terrace collapsed into the second floor around 4 a.m., causing significant damage to the second and first stores as well as the ground level garage, the FDNY and Department of Buildings said.

There were no injuries reported in the collapse, and firefighters briefly evacuated the homes next door as a precaution, a spokesman for the FDNY said.

DOB inspectors found significant water seepage and deterioration of the home's wooden frame, which they said likely caused the collapse. 

A full vacate order was put on the home because it was deemed unsafe to enter, and the DOB issued an order to demolish the building as early as Thursday, a spokeswoman for the DOB said.

The home was up for sale by the owners by Our Island Real Estate for $1,499,000, according to Truila. Before it was put up for sale, the previous owner racked a large number of complaints and violations from the DOB that started after they bought the property 2004.

DOB records list Tamra Chene as the owner, but previous reports about the violations named Moshe Chene as the owner.

The owners had 36 complaints and six violations since 2004, including being issued a stop work order for illegally starting construction on a third-floor extension without the proper permits, according to the DOB.

Moshe Chene was also cited by the DOB for installing a "Coming Soon VIP Strip Club & Bar" outside a different building he owned in 2007, the Staten Island Advance reported.

The real-estate agent for the home could not answer how long it has been listed for sale or confirm any other details about the property.

The owners could not be immediately reached for comment.